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LAWRENCE — Four University of Kansas students have been selected for prestigious Fulbright awards for research and study for the 2014-15 academic year.

The Fulbright program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and people of other countries. Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields.

The U.S. Student Fulbright program operates in more than 155 countries worldwide. Fulbright grants provide funding for travel, maintenance for one academic year, health and accident insurance and, where relevant, tuition. Since the program’s inception in 1946, 447 KU students, including this year’s awardees, have been awarded Fulbrights.

The Office of International Programs coordinates applications for Fulbright grants.

Vincent Artman, of Eugene, Oregon, received bachelor's degrees in history and in geography as well as a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is pursuing a doctorate in geography at KU. Artman plans to investigate the geographical dimensions related to Islam and national identity in Kyrgyzstan through a study of the Mausoleum of Manas and other spaces that are used for both secular and religious purposes. Artman was also awarded an Institute for Advanced Research Opportunities fellowship sponsored by the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, U.S. Department of State, for his research in Kyrgyzstan. Artman has accepted the IARO.

Qi Chen, of Overland Park, graduated in May 2014 with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering, with minors in economics and mathematics. He has received a Fulbright grant to the United Kingdom, where he will study in the Master of Science program in Advanced Chemical Engineering with Process Systems Engineering at Imperial College, London. Chen will work on innovative models for physical property prediction in the research group of Dr. Claire Adjiman.

Nicholas Cunigan, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, received a bachelor's degree in history at Calvin College, a master's degree in history at KU and is now pursuing a doctorate in history at KU. He has received a Fulbright grant to Amsterdam, Netherlands. Cunigan will investigate the relationship between climate during the peak of the Little Ice Age and how it affected Dutch-indigenous relationships in New Netherland, Dutch Brazil and Curacao.

Irene Olivares, of Phoenix, received a bachelor's degree in history at University of Arizona and is pursuing a doctorate in history at KU. Olivares has received a Fulbright grant to Spain, where she will examine archived materials related to her dissertation topic, “Women, Writing, and Political Power in the Spanish Empire (1554-1665)." Her research will take place in Madrid and Seville.

Alternates

Ethan Bartley, of Kansas City, Missouri, completed a bachelor's degree in music-trumpet in May. He is an alternate for study in Finland.

Ashley Hirt, of Olathe, is a doctoral student in musicology. She is an alternate for research in Norway.

David Trimbach, of Dayton Ohio, is a doctoral student in geography. He is an alternate for research in Estonia.

The University of Kansas is a major comprehensive research and teaching university. The university's mission
is to lift students and society by educating leaders, building healthy communities and making discoveries
that change the world. The KU News Service is the central public relations office for the Lawrence campus.